In hard times, marijuana farming more popular

Machete-wielding police officers have hacked their way through billions of dollars worth of marijuana in the country's top pot-growing states to stave off a bumper crop sprouting in the tough economy. The number of plants seized has jumped this year in California, the nation's top marijuana-growing state, while seizures continue to rise in Washington after nearly doubling the previous year. Growers in a three-state region of central Appalachia also appear to have reversed a decline in pot cultivation over the last two years.

The leaves of a marijuana plant are seen as Kentucky State Police and Kentucky National Guard troops search hillsides near Barbourvillle, Ky., for the plants Wed., July 22, 2009. The demand for domestically grown marijuana is at a record high, in part because stricter border control has made it more difficult to import pot from Mexico. (AP Photo/Roger Alford)

Kentucky State Police and Kentucky National Guard troops wade through acres of dense Chinese silvergrass as they search for marijuana plants near Barbourville, Ky., Wed., July 22, 2009. The demand for domestically grown marijuana is at a record high, in part because stricter border control has made it more difficult to import pot from Mexico. (AP Photo/Roger Alford)

Kentucky State Trooper Curtis Pingleton ties string around a bundle of marijuana cut Wed., July 22, 2009 from a hillside near Barbourville, Ky. The demand for domestically grown marijuana is at a record high, in part because stricter border control has made it more difficult to import pot from Mexico. (AP Photo/Roger Alford)

Kentucky State Police find a small plot of marijuana hidden among other vegetation on an Appalachian hillside near Barbourville, Ky., Wed., July 22, 2009. The demand for domestically grown marijuana is at a record high, in part because stricter border control has made it more difficult to import pot from Mexico. (AP Photo/Roger Alford)

Kentucky State Trooper Trooper Mac McDonald carries a bundle of marijuana along railroad tracks near Barbourville, Ky., Wed., July 22, 2009. The demand for domestically grown marijuana is at a record high, in part because stricter border control has made it more difficult to import pot from Mexico. (AP Photo/Roger Alford)